When I'm buying seed, I look for clean packaging, little or no debris in the bottom of the bags, no bugs or cobwebs in the bag. I buy only at places that have a high turnover of food sells. I check for dates on the bags. Most seed and nuts are harvested and packaged are about 6 months old by the time they get to the shelf.

Our Avian vet feels that seeds should be a part of a parrot's diet , especially for the smaller parrots that eat seeds in the wild. She has raised her own tiels on seeds and some other birds on mixtures of seeds and pellets. Of course this is supplemented with fresh veggies and fruits. We have our RB2s on mixtures of seeds and pellets plus the above fruits and veggies.

We have found that ABBA seeds are the best because seeds are only a part of what is in the mixture; it contains dehydrated veggies and fruits and meat protein and is loaded with vitamins and minerals. Our RB2s prefer this over anything, which is especially important for our little male as he is so hyperactive. Harry gets a larger portion of seeds than Hannah (our perch potato) who is a little obese (she gets less seeds and more pellets). Harry does not like pellets very well and chews awhile then tosses them. Our tiels get the cockatiel mixture.

This is what the ABBA seed mixture for small hookbills has in it:ABBA 1200 IDEAL FOR ALL TYPES OF SMALL HOOKBILLS FROM LOVEBIRDS TO SMALL AMAZONS

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS:

CRUDE PROTEIN – NOT LESS THAN 11%; CRUDE FAT – NOT LESS THAN 5%; CRUDE FIBRE – NOT MORE THAN 15%; MOISTURE (MAX) – 14%; ASH (MAX) – 5%

ABBA 1200 is sold with 100% satisfaction guaranteed – or you may return the unused portion for a refund of the unused portion – NOTE: Best if used within 45 days of manufacture date. ***MADE IN THE USA***Here is their website: http://www.abbaseed.com/Seed_Products/seed_products.html

We freeze the seeds for several days to kill any eggs that might be in there from grain moths (they are awful if you have ever had them hatch and fly around in your house).

Human grade seeds? Humans eat seeds? I never knew that... at least not what I considered to be birdy seeds. why would people eat seeds... except like poppy seeds or sesame seeds or sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds... like that?

I get organic seeds at Whole Foods Market for me and my birds. I sprout most of them before I use them. I think the main thing to look for is if they will sprout or not. Try to sprout some of them and if they don't sprout, they're probably old. Also, the bad seeds will float and you can just pour them off the top. If it's quality seed, there won't be very many that float. I've even sprouted a parakeet seed/pellet mix. I don't recommend it. It gets really gross when the pellets break down.